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Why Is This Baby Surrounded by Syringes?

When the Sher Fertility Institute posted a picture on Facebook of a gorgeous baby girl surrounded by syringes in the shape of a heart, it drew worldwide attention. While many were confused by the needles at first, upon further reading, they would learn that the hundreds of needles were used for all of the blood draws and injections that the baby's mother, Angela, had to endure during her year and a half process to get pregnant via IVF.

Not wanting to forget the pain and the joy she experienced to get to motherhood, the new mom made sure to remember her journey through infertility by snapping this striking picture. Angela tells ABC News, "The needles were the easy part. It was the emotional struggle, the ups and downs, that really took a toll ... I'm single and waited a long time for a husband to come. And then by that time, it was difficult to get pregnant."

She then shared the picture with the Sher Institiute who captioned the photo "Wow, what a photo. Thank you to Sher Fertility St. Louis and Dr. Dayal patient Angela, who shows the true definition of love that went into making this gorgeous new baby girl."

And the response was overwhelming.

Parents who had also undergone fertility treatments or those that were currently in the throes of it all—and even those who hadn't experience it firsthand—chimed in.

Lisa Stark, director of communications for Sher Fertility Institute, tells USA Today,"We felt like it was a provocative, emotional photo that captures the joy and pain of IVF," and adds that they hope the viral photo encourages "a culture of openness" and elevates the dialogue around infertility.

Judging by the over 1,000 comments left on the photo, we'd say they're off to a pretty good start.